It is generally thought that video content items, such as rendered graphics in video games, are of higher quality when displayed at relatively high resolutions with relatively high refresh rates. However, when device hardware is strained by complicated rendering, refresh rates may suffer. While resolution may be sacrificed in order to maintain a desirable refresh rate, rendering at lower resolutions may result in an unfavorable viewing experience if the content appears noticeably degraded (e.g., pixelated). By contrast, other video content items, such as text overlays and graphical user interface (GUI) elements, are known to suffer quality degradation when rendered at lower resolutions.